Washington: State's All-Time Hoops Wins Leader Retires

Lakes linebacker commits to Washington; Bellevue takes on another national power; East-West football all-stars named.

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Mar 23, 2009, 12:00am
The state's all-time leader in basketball wins has finally decided to call it quits.

Mercer Island boys basketball coach Ed Pepple has retired after 49 years of coaching, the last 42 with the Islanders.

Pepple is the state's all-time winningest coach with 952 wins (he has 306 losses and a .757 winning percentage). He won four state titles.
Ed Pepple, Mercer Island
Ed Pepple, Mercer Island
Photo By Nicholas Koza

"It's been a great run," Pepple told the Seattle Times. "Obviously you'd be crazy to stay at a job for 42 years and not enjoy it. I've been blessed to do something that I love. I have a lot of great memories and it's been a magnificent and rewarding experience for me."

Football: East-West All-Stars Announced

Mariner football coach John Ondriezek is the West coach for the East-West All-Star game, which is slated for June 27 at Everett Memorial Stadium. Greg Kittrell of Moses Lake is the East coach.

For complete rosters, click here.

Football: Lakes Linebacker Commits to Washington

Lakes linebacker Darius Waters (6-foot-2, 205-pounds) verbally committed to Washington.

"First of all, it's home, but I just really like the coaches," Waters told the Seattle Times. "The coaching staff is really enthusiastic and has a lot of age diversity. I can just really see myself playing for them."

Waters expects to play outside linebacker. He said UW was the only team to offer him a scholarship.

Football: Bellevue Schedules Texas Power

The Bellevue Wolverines, the Class 3A state champs, like to schedule big games.

Bellevue ended De La Salle's record winning streak and knocked off another California power, Long Beach Poly.

Now Bellevue, which has won six of the last eight Class 3A state titles, will take on Katy, Texas, which has won the last two Class 5A state titles. The game is set for Sept. 12 at Katy's Rhodes Stadium.

The next week, on Sept. 19, Bellevue will play Grant of Sacramento, which won California's Open Division Title at Qwest Field in Seattle.
Bellevue will take on defending state champions from California and Texas in 2009.
Bellevue will take on defending state champions from California and Texas in 2009.
Photo By Juliann Tallino

WIAA: 2009 Hall of Fame Class Announced

The Washington Interscholastic Activities Association announced its 2009 Hall of Fame class on Wednesday. The induction ceremony is April 15 in Renton.

This year's class:

John Olerud, Interlake: Olerud starred at Washington State before embarking on a lengthy major league career, including a successful stop with the Mariners.

Chris Henderson, Cascade: Henderson, who won two state soccer titles, played professionally in Europe before becoming a founding member of Major League Soccer and playing 11 years in the U.S.

Lisa Raschow Johnson, Auburn: Johnson won state softball and basketball titles before setting an assists record at Washington.

Bill Harris, Federal Way: Harris coached track and field and cross country at Federal Way for more than 30 years, winning two state titles and countless league championships.

Curt DeHaan, Lynden Christian: DeHaan has 648 wins at Lynden Christian, the most girls wins in state history. He has won seven state titles.

Mike Burton: Burton's service spans four decades. He worked as an official and in programs such as forensics. Dick Eglet: Eglet has been an official since 1965.

Alli Bennett, Garfield-Palouse: Bennett has been athletic director at Garfield-Palouse for 14 years and District 9 president for 10.

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